Midterm Flashcards
What are international human rights?
Rights that individuals possess by virtue of being human, regardless of nationality or jurisdiction.
The right to be free from torture is recognized internationally regardless of a country’s domestic laws.
What is sovereignty?
The principle that states have supreme authority within their own borders.
China’s refusal to allow international investigations into alleged abuses in Xinjiang.
What is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
A 1948 document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly outlining fundamental human rights.
It proclaims the right to education and has influenced many national constitutions, including those of South Africa, Germany, and India.
What does it mean that human rights are a Global North construct?
The idea that international human rights norms reflect Western, particularly Global North, values.
Some leaders in Asia argue that community rights should be emphasized over individual rights.
What is the comparison to the ideal in human rights?
A method of evaluating human rights by comparing state behavior to normative standards.
Comparing Saudi Arabia’s treatment of women to rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
What is empirical comparison in human rights?
Evaluation of human rights performance based on data and observed practices.
Using the Political Terror Scale to compare levels of abuse in different nations.
What are physical integrity rights?
Rights protecting individuals from physical harm by the state, such as torture and extrajudicial killing.
Violations include the use of death squads in El Salvador in the 1980s.
What is the Political Terror Scale?
A measure of physical integrity rights violations, based on annual human rights reports.
A country rated 5 on the scale is likely engaging in widespread violence and imprisonment.
What is the Cingranelli and Richards Index?
A dataset measuring government respect for various human rights, including physical integrity and empowerment rights.
Used to assess changes in human rights practices over time in Latin America.
What is the changing standard of accountability?
The evolving expectation that governments will be held responsible for human rights violations.
Prosecution of former leaders like Chile’s Augusto Pinochet for past crimes.
What is the information paradox in human rights?
The contradiction that more human rights information does not always lead to better outcomes.
Increased reporting on abuses in Myanmar has not led to consistent international intervention.
What is a latent variable measure of human rights?
A statistical approach that infers human rights conditions from observable indicators.
Bayesian models estimating state torture rates based on media reports and expert assessments.
What is the Human Rights Measurement Initiative?
A collaborative project that collects and analyzes data on human rights fulfillment worldwide.
Tracks country performance in areas like freedom from torture and access to health care.
What is a veto player?
An individual or institution whose agreement is necessary for policy change.
The United States Senate can block the ratification of international treaties.
What is repression according to Ritten and Conrad?
The actual or threatened use of physical sanctions against individuals or organizations for the purpose of deterring or punishing behavior.
Imprisoning protest leaders to prevent further demonstrations.
What is dissent according to Ritten and Conrad?
Public criticism or opposition to state authority, ranging from protest to organized resistance.
Student protests against tuition hikes.
What are empowerment rights?
Rights that enable participation in political and civic life, such as freedom of expression and assembly.
The right to vote in free and fair elections.
What is co-optation by a dictator?
A strategy by which authoritarian leaders incorporate opposition into the regime to reduce conflict.
Offering political appointments to opposition leaders.
What is state capacity?
The ability of a state to implement policies and provide public services.
States unable to control their police forces may struggle to prevent abuse.
What is the moral hazard problem?
When protection mechanisms unintentionally encourage risky behavior.
Rebels committing abuses in the belief that foreign aid will continue regardless.
What is an international regime?
A set of norms, rules, and institutions that govern international behavior in a specific area.
The global human rights regime centered around the United Nations.
What is a binding document/decision?
A legal agreement or ruling that imposes obligations on parties.
Rulings of the European Court of Human Rights.
What is the American Convention on Human Rights?
A regional treaty adopted by the Organization of American States to protect human rights in the Americas.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights can rule against member states.
What were the Nuremberg trials?
Post-World War II military tribunals that prosecuted Nazi leaders for crimes against humanity.
Hermann Göring was convicted and sentenced at Nuremberg.
What is the United Nations Charter?
The founding document of the United Nations that outlines the organization’s purposes and principles.
Article 55 calls for universal respect for human rights.
What is the Genocide Convention?
A 1948 treaty defining and criminalizing genocide under international law.
Applied to the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
What is the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination?
A treaty committing signatories to eliminate racial discrimination and promote understanding.
South Africa’s apartheid policies were condemned under this convention.
What is the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights?
A treaty recognizing rights related to work, education, health, and living standards.
Recognizes the right to adequate food and housing.
What is the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights?
A treaty guaranteeing personal freedoms and protections from state abuse.
Protects freedom of speech and the right to a fair trial.
What is the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women?
A United Nations treaty addressing women’s rights and gender equality.
Requires states to eliminate laws that discriminate based on gender.
What is the Convention Against Torture?
An international treaty aiming to prevent torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment worldwide.
Canada altered its extradition laws to ensure compliance with the Convention Against Torture.
What is the Convention on the Rights of the Child?
A human rights treaty setting out the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights of children.
The Convention has led to laws banning corporal punishment in many countries.
What is the Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers?
A treaty protecting the rights of migrant workers and their families.
The treaty has been used to demand labor protections for migrant workers in the Gulf States.
What is the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities?
A treaty promoting and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities.
Many countries enacted disability-access laws in public transportation and buildings after ratification.
What is the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance?
A treaty addressing the secret arrest or abduction of individuals by the state or its agents.
Families of the disappeared in Argentina rely on this convention for justice.
What is the European Convention on Human Rights?
A regional treaty securing civil and political rights for Europeans.
The Court ruled against the United Kingdom for mass surveillance policies.
What is democratization?
The transition process from authoritarianism to democracy.
Tunisia’s transition post-Arab Spring saw improvements in free press and elections.
What is accountability in international law?
Holding individuals and states responsible for violating international norms.
Former Liberian President Charles Taylor was convicted for war crimes.
What is transnational activism?
Activism that crosses national boundaries to promote social and political change.
Global campaigns pressured Nike to reform sweatshop conditions.
What are smaller democracies as agents of socialization?
The idea that smaller democratic states can model and spread human rights norms.
Sweden promotes global LGBT+ rights through its foreign policy.
What is a declaration?
A non-binding statement of principles or intentions by an international body.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights laid groundwork for binding treaties.
What is an international treaty?
A legally binding agreement between states governed by international law.
The Geneva Conventions regulate warfare and treatment of civilians.
What is a treaty signature?
Indicates a state’s preliminary endorsement of a treaty.
The United States signed but never ratified the Rome Statute.
What is treaty ratification?
The formal approval of a treaty by a state’s legislature or executive.
France ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1980.
What is treaty accession?
A state’s acceptance of a treaty it did not sign when it was open for signature.
South Africa acceded to the Convention Against Torture in 1998.
What is treaty succession?
When a new state becomes party to a treaty signed by its predecessor state.
After the Soviet Union dissolved, Russia succeeded to many of its treaties.
What is a reservation?
A unilateral statement by a state to exclude or modify parts of a treaty.
The United States entered a reservation to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women regarding abortion.
What is derogation?
Temporary suspension of treaty obligations during emergencies.
France derogated certain rights under the European Convention on Human Rights after terrorist attacks.
Who is the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights?
The leading official responsible for promoting and protecting human rights in the United Nations.
Michelle Bachelet served as High Commissioner from 2018 to 2022.
What is a false positive (ratifiers)?
States that ratify treaties but do not comply with their obligations.
Egypt ratified many human rights treaties but has a record of repression.
What is a false negative (nonratifiers)?
States that do not ratify treaties but respect rights in practice.
The United States has not ratified some treaties but still enforces many rights.
What is self-enforcement?
States comply with international law based on self-interest and internal accountability.
Democracies often comply with treaties to preserve reputation and legitimacy.
What is a collective action problem?
When individual states lack incentive to act because they hope others will shoulder the burden.
Few countries intervened in Syria due to high costs and low individual benefits.
What is third-party enforcement?
External actors or institutions hold states accountable for violations.
The International Criminal Court prosecutes individuals for crimes when states fail to act.
What is the compliance gap?
The difference between treaty ratification and actual behavior.
States may report compliance while still violating rights.
What is a treaty body?
A committee of experts that monitors implementation of a specific treaty.
The Human Rights Committee oversees the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
What is the Human Rights Committee?
A treaty body established under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Reviews reports and considers individual complaints.
What is self-reporting?
When states submit progress reports to treaty bodies on their implementation efforts.
A country may report on new laws but omit ongoing violations.
What is a shadow report?
A report submitted by non-governmental organizations offering alternative information to official state reports.
Human Rights Watch submitted a shadow report challenging Sudan’s claims on press freedom.
What is a petition/complaint from individuals?
A mechanism that allows individuals to bring cases to international treaty bodies.
A Peruvian woman filed a complaint with the Human Rights Committee over denied access to abortion.
